Carter's Personal Air Vehicle completes test flight

January 17, 2011, 05:00 pm

Carter Aviation's Personal Air Vehicle has completed its first test flight, the company announced.

The PAV is a four-seat aircraft that is currently in its second generation proof-of-concept stage. Carter Aviation is funding the development of the plane through an economic incentive program offered by the city of Wichita Falls, Texas. As a condition of their funding, they must pass eight funding milestones, the first of which was the 30-minute test flight, completed on January 5th.

After the first generation version, Carter focused on adding additional computerized controls to make the plane easy for pilots to fly. According to Carter, the test pilot's response that the aircraft was "unbelievably fun to fly" is an indicator that they have reached that goal.

Going forward, the company's focus will be on mastering the SR/C technology, which they describe as a combination of rotorcraft and fixed-wing aerodynamics that comprise their main area of development. Phase two of the plane's development process will add a 45-foot wing section. With each passing milestone, the company gets closer to being able to commercialize the aircraft and make it available for general aviation pilots.

Though this and other aircrafts boast ease of flight, all planes are vulnerable to dangerous situations. Life insurance for pilots is a necessary consideration should something go wrong during a flight.